Editing Delmarva Peninsula (section)

==Political divisions==
[[Image:Sediment in Motion at Ocean City.jpg|thumb|Sediment in motion at [[Ocean City, Maryland]]]]
The border between Maryland and Delaware, which resulted from the 80-year-long [[Penn–Calvert Boundary Dispute]], consists of the east–west [[Transpeninsular Line]] and the perpendicular north–south portion of the [[Mason–Dixon line]] extending north to just beyond its tangential intersection with the [[Twelve-Mile Circle]] which forms Delaware's border with [[Pennsylvania]]. The border between Maryland and Virginia on the peninsula follows the [[Pocomoke River]] from the Chesapeake to a series of straight [[Surveying|surveyed]] lines connecting the Pocomoke to the Atlantic Ocean.

All three counties in Delaware, [[New Castle County, Delaware|New Castle]] (partially), [[Kent County, Delaware|Kent]], and [[Sussex County, Delaware|Sussex]], are located on the peninsula. Of the 23 [[county|counties]] in Maryland, nine are on the [[Eastern Shore of Maryland|Eastern Shore]]: [[Kent County, Maryland|Kent]], [[Queen Anne's County, Maryland|Queen Anne's]], [[Talbot County, Maryland|Talbot]], [[Caroline County, Maryland|Caroline]], [[Dorchester County, Maryland|Dorchester]], [[Wicomico County, Maryland|Wicomico]], [[Somerset County, Maryland|Somerset]], and [[Worcester County, Maryland|Worcester]], as well as a portion of [[Cecil County, Maryland|Cecil County]].  Two Virginia counties are on the peninsula: [[Accomack County, Virginia|Accomack]] and [[Northampton County, Virginia|Northampton]].

The following is a list of some of the notable cities and towns on the peninsula.
* [[Cambridge, Maryland]], is the county seat of Dorchester County and a busy port on the [[Choptank River]].
* [[Centreville, Maryland]], is the county seat of Queen Anne's County.
* [[Chestertown, Maryland]], is the county seat of Kent County, MD and the home of [[Washington College]].
* [[Chincoteague, Virginia]], is noted for its wild [[Pony|ponies]] and its beaches, administered by the [[U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service]] through [[Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge]]; the Atlantic Ocean side of the wildlife refuge is administered by the [[National Park Service]] as the southern portion of [[Assateague Island National Seashore]].
* [[Crisfield, Maryland]], is a notable source of seafood.
* [[Delmar, Maryland]], part of the Salisbury Urbanized Area, lies across the Maryland-Delaware border from its twin, [[Delmar, Delaware]], on the [[Transpeninsular Line]].
* [[Dover, Delaware]], is the Delaware [[List of capitals in the United States|state capital]] and the peninsula's largest city in terms of population. It is also the county seat of Kent County, DE and is home to [[Delaware State University]]. 
* [[Easton, Maryland]], is the county seat of Talbot County.
* [[Georgetown, Delaware]], is the county seat of Sussex County. Return Day, a [[wikt:biennial|biennial]] tradition dating back to the Colonial era, is held in Georgetown two days after [[Election Day]].<ref>[https://www.returnday.com/ Sussex County Return Day]</ref>
* [[Lewes, Delaware]], is the site of the first European colonization in Delaware, is nicknamed "the first town in the first state", and is a port city for the [[Cape May–Lewes Ferry]].
* [[Ocean City, Maryland]], is a popular beach and resort town.
* [[Princess Anne, Maryland]], is the county seat of Somerset County and the home of the [[University of Maryland Eastern Shore]].
* [[Rehoboth Beach, Delaware]], "the Nation's Summer Capital", has a sixteenfold increase in population from winter to summer.
* [[St. Michaels, Maryland]], is a popular tourist destination.
* [[Salisbury, Maryland]], is the county seat of Wicomico County, the second largest city in the peninsula and the lower peninsula's only [[Urban area#United States|urbanized area]]. It is known as the "Crossroads of Delmarva". It is home to the [[Salisbury–Ocean City–Wicomico Regional Airport]], the only airport on the peninsula with scheduled commercial flights.  The city is also home to [[Salisbury University]], a Maryland state university.  
* [[Seaford, Delaware]], the "Nylon Capital of the World", is the largest city in Sussex County.

At its southern tip, the Delmarva Peninsula is connected to [[Virginia Beach]] and [[Hampton Roads]], Virginia, via the [[Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel]] which opened in 1964. The bridge tunnel is owned and administered by the [[Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel District]].

===Largest municipalities===

{{legend2|#CCF|[[List of capitals in the United States|State capital]] and [[county seat]] |border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}{{double-dagger|alt=State capital}}

{{legend2|#b4ddb4|[[County seat]]|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}{{dagger|alt=County seat}}
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Rank
!Name
!Type
!Population
! data-sort-type="number"|Area
!County
!State
!Settled
!Inc.
!Origin of Name
|- style="background-color:#CCF;"
| 1
| [[Dover, Delaware|Dover ‡]]
| Capital city
| 38,079
| 23.48 sq mi 
| [[Kent County, Delaware|Kent]]
| [[Delaware]]
| 1683
| 1829
| [[Dover]] in Kent, England
|- style="background-color:#b4ddb4;"
| 2
| [[Salisbury, Maryland|Salisbury†]]
| City
| 32,809
| 13.40 sq mi
| [[Wicomico County, Maryland|Wicomico]]
| [[Maryland]]
| 1732
| 1854
| 
|-
| 3
| [[Middletown, Delaware|Middletown]]
| Town
| 22,582
| 11.83 sq mi
| [[New Castle County, Delaware|New Castle]]
| [[Delaware]]
|
| 1861
| Halfway between [[Bunker Hill, Maryland]], and [[Odessa, Delaware]]
|- style="background-color:#b4ddb4;"
| 4
| [[Easton, Maryland|Easton†]]
| Town
| 16,494
| 10.56 sq mi
| [[Talbot County, Maryland|Talbot]]
| [[Maryland]]
|
| 1790
| 
|- style="background-color:#b4ddb4;"
| 5
| [[Cambridge, Maryland|Cambridge†]]
| Town
| 12,285
| 10.34 sq mi
| [[Dorchester County, Maryland|Dorchester]]
| [[Maryland]]
|
| 1793
| 
|-
| 6
| [[Smyrna, Delaware|Smyrna]]
| Town
| 11,580
| 6.01 sq mi
| [[Kent County, Delaware|Kent]]/[[New Castle County, Delaware|New Castle]]
| [[Delaware]]
|
|
| Ancient Greek city of [[Smyrna]]
|-
| 7
| [[Milford, Delaware|Milford]]
| City
| 11,353
| 9.87 sq mi
| [[Kent County, Delaware|Kent]]/[[Sussex County, Delaware|Sussex]]
| [[Delaware]]
|
|
| Named for numerous mills around town
|-
|8
| [[Seaford, Delaware|Seaford]]
| City
| 7,861
| 5.30 sq mi
| [[Sussex County, Delaware|Sussex]]
| [[Delaware]]
|
| 1865
| [[Seaford, East Sussex]]
|- style="background-color:#b4ddb4;"
| 9
| [[Georgetown, Delaware|Georgetown †]]
| Town
| 7,427
| 5.14 sq mi
| [[Sussex County, Delaware|Sussex]]
| [[Delaware]]
| 1791
| 1869
| Commissioner George Mitchell
|- 
| 10
| [[Ocean City, Maryland|Ocean City]]
| Town
| 6,927
| 4.41 sq mi
| [[Worcester County, Maryland|Worcester]]
| [[Maryland]]
| 1875
| 1880
| 
|}

===Proposed state===
At various times in history, residents of the Delmarva Peninsula have proposed that its Maryland and Virginia portions [[Secession|secede]] from their respective states, merging with Kent County and Sussex County, Delaware, to create the state of Delmarva. A Delmarva State Party with this aim was founded in 1992.<ref>{{cite news |last=Gosier |first=Chris |date=February 20, 1998 |url=https://cnsmaryland.org/1998/02/20/would-be-secessionists-dream-up-the-state-of-delmarva/ |url-status=live |title= Would-be Secessionists Dream Up the State of Delmarva |publisher=[[Capital News Service (Maryland)|Capital News Service]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215080512/https://cnsmaryland.org/1998/02/20/would-be-secessionists-dream-up-the-state-of-delmarva/ |archive-date=December 15, 2018}}</ref> A combined population with the Eastern Shores of Maryland and Virginia, with the aforementioned two Delaware counties, would be about 750,000, or 921,739 in 2020, roughly the population of [[South Dakota]]. Including [[New Castle County, Delaware]], the combined population would be 1,492,458 in 2020, roughly the population of [[Hawaii]] or [[New Hampshire]].

Legislative attempts to break away the Eastern Shore counties of Maryland and join them with Delaware were made several times. In November 1776, delegates from the Eastern Shore attempted to insert a clause into the [[Maryland Declaration of Rights]] that would allow the shore counties to secede from Maryland, with the clause being defeated 30–17. In 1833, the secession movement came close to succeeding: a Delaware resolution proposing the [[Eastern Shore of Maryland]] be absorbed into Delaware passed the [[Delaware Senate]] and [[Delaware House of Representatives]], then passed the [[Maryland House of Delegates]] with a 40–24 vote, but failed to be voted out of committee by the [[Maryland Senate]]. The following year, a Caroline County representative proposed allowing the Eastern Shore to secede via referendum, but the Maryland House of Delegates voted 60–5 to indefinitely postpone the measure, and that proposal was never taken up again. In 1851, Dorchester County delegate and future Maryland Governor [[Thomas Holliday Hicks]] proposed an amendment that would give the Eastern Shore the right to vote itself into Delaware, but the amendment failed 51–27.<ref>{{cite news |title=Secession movement has long history on state's Eastern Shore |newspaper=[[The Star Democrat]] |location=Easton, Maryland |date=March 18, 1994}}</ref>

{{Hidden begin
|titlestyle = background:#ccccff;
|title      = Presidential election results 
}}
{| class="sortable wikitable"
|+ '''Including the entirety of New Castle<br>County, DE and Cecil County, MD'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ourcampaigns.com/|title=Our Campaigns|access-date=February 20, 2021}}</ref>
|- style="background:lightgrey;"
! Year
! [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
! [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
! Others
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 2024|2024]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''50.9%''' ''394,993''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|47.4% ''367,806''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|1.7% ''13,899''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 2020|2020]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''53.0%''' ''402,229''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|45.3% ''343,352''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|1.7% ''13,049''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 2016|2016]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''47.6%''' ''322,702''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|47.2% ''320,387''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|5.2% ''35,135''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 2012|2012]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''53.0%''' ''340,859''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|45.4% ''292,042''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|1.6% ''10,172''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 2008|2008]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''55.5%''' ''354,566''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|43.2% ''276,438''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|1.3% ''8,324''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 2004|2004]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|48.4% ''279,880''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''50.6%''' ''292,716''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|1.0% ''5,567''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 2000|2000]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''51.0%''' ''251,836''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|45.8% ''226,268''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|3.2% ''15,766''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1996|1996]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''48.8%''' ''202,681''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|39.8% ''165,360''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|11.3% ''46,940''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1992|1992]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''41.2%''' ''183,693''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|38.3% ''170,585''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|20.5% ''91,437''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1988|1988]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|41.2% ''157,129''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''58.2%''' ''222,013''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|0.6% ''2,452''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1984|1984]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|37.7% ''143,171''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''62.0%''' ''235,378''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|0.3% ''1,319''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1980|1980]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|44.4% ''156,436''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''48.5%''' ''170,788''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|7.2% ''25,251''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1976|1976]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''51.1%''' ''173,700''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|47.8% ''162,669''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|1.1% ''3,875''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1972|1972]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|35.8% ''119,150''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''62.9%''' ''209,460''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|1.2% ''4,148''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1968|1968]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|38.0% ''118,585''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''45.1%''' ''140,933''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|16.9% ''52,896''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1964|1964]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|'''59.6%''' ''173,647''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|40.3% ''117,394''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|0.2% ''549''
|-
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''[[U.S. presidential election, 1960|1960]]'''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Democratic}}|49.7% ''142,583''
|align="center" {{Party shading/Republican}}|'''50.0%''' ''143,578''
|align="center" {{Party shading/None}}|0.3% ''751''
|}
{{Hidden end}}